


Tango Maureen

by gingerfic



Series: An Alphabet of Samcedes Stories [20]
Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - RENT, Broadway, F/M, Rent References, Tango, samcedes - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-30
Updated: 2015-10-30
Packaged: 2018-04-28 21:45:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5106827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gingerfic/pseuds/gingerfic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I hear you’ve taken up with my ex,” he teased. “She’s really hot but she’s sort of hard to live with.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tango Maureen

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_bZGbXjhsU&), [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0QfCIQgD94), and a tango class I took once.
> 
> beta by voyagehk

Broadway may not have been Mercedes Jones’ first plan, but now that she was here she was loving it. After a short run in the background in  _ The Book of Mormon _ she had gotten her lucky break and landed the role of Joanne in a production of  _ Rent . _ She had met her castmates briefly at the first read through, but most of her scenes were with the same person: Rachel Berry, who played her girlfriend Maureen. Rachel was definitely talented, but she could be a little self-centered and even though they got along well enough, Mercedes didn’t see herself spending much time with her outside of rehearsals.

Today, though, was going to be different. Today Mercedes was going to get to know her other scene partner: Sam Evans, who played Maureen’s ex, Mark. They had a scene together where they had to do a tango (while singing), and since neither of them knew how to tango beforehand, the choreographer had called special rehearsals to teach it to them.

“And there she is!” Simon, the overly perky choreographer said, clapping his hands enthusiastically as she entered.

“I’m not late, am I?” Mercedes asked with a worried glance toward the clock.

“Naw, I was early,” a mellow voice came from behind her. She spun around, dropping her bag as she did so, and was met by a wide grin and twinkling blue eyes. “Hi, I’m Sam,” he said, holding out his hand. 

She shook it warmly. “Mercedes.”

“I hear you’ve taken up with my ex,” he teased. “She’s really hot but she’s sort of hard to live with.”

Mercedes laughed. “Good thing I’m not really dating her. I mean, besides being straight, I think Rachel Berry is way too high maintenance for me.”

“Oh?” Sam sounded curious.

Mercedes nodded. “I wouldn’t have time for her after I was done taking care of all this.” She gestured to herself.

“Ah,” Sam laughed. “I’ll have to remember that.”

Simon cleared his throat. “Alright, Sam, Mercedes, I’m glad to see you’re getting along so well. Because doing a tango correctly means that you’re going to have to be very comfortable with each other. Now, Sam, I need you to hold her like so.” He stepped up to Mercedes, taking her right hand with his left, and snaking his right hand around all the way across her back. 

Sam nodded, and held out his hand as Simon stepped away, then moved in and took the same position.

“The tango requires full body contact from here to here,” Simon continued, holding one hand at his chest and the other near his knee. “At times you will lean out or do kicks like so, but your pelvises need to stay in contact so that your movements will be in sync with each other.”

Sam cleared his throat and pulled Mercedes closer so that they were touching as directed. She inhaled sharply. Yes, she was a professional, and she had no problem getting up close and personal with people when she needed to, but this was just... _ really personal. _

Thankfully Sam lightened the moment for them both. “Lucky for both of us I remembered my deodorant this morning!” he stage-whispered. Mercedes giggled.

“Very nice, good, yes,” Simon babbled. “Now, I’m going to show each of you some steps separately, and then do them with you before having you do them with each other, ok?”

\-----

Two hours later Mercedes was sweating (and feeling very thankful for her own deodorant, for the fact that she was wearing a tank top, and also for the fact that Sam was clearly sweating as much as she was).

“Are you ready to do the whole verse then?” Simon asked with altogether too much energy (and too little sweat) for someone who had moving as much as he had.

“Might as well!” Sam said, holding out his hand with a goofy grin. “Milady?”

“We’re supposed to hate each other,” Mercedes hissed, though she couldn’t help grinning as she let him pull her in and they started the footwork they had been practicing so hard.

“Where'd you learn to tango?” Sam asked conversationally, slipping smoothly into his role as Mark.

Mercedes smirked. “With the French Ambassador's daughter in her dorm room at Miss Porter's. And you?”

“With Nanette Himmelfarb the Rabbi's daughter at the Scarsdale Jewish Community Center.” Sam delivered the line with such seriousness that Mercedes nearly cracked up at the ridiculousness of it.  _ It’s ok, _ she reminded herself.  _ This is only rehearsal. Everybody breaks character in rehearsal now and then. _ She shook her head and forced herself to focus as she hooked her leg through his for a series of careful kicks before spinning around and taking the lead.

(“I’ve created entirely new choreography for you two,” Simon had explained. “In most versions Mark and Joanne have been the same height, but you two obviously are not so this has a whole different flavor,” he added giddily.)

“It's hard to do this backwards,” Sam said plaintively.

Mercedes smirked. (This was one of her favorite lines of the whole show.) She stepped to the side as he leaned against her and she dragged him across the floor. “You should try it in heels!”

\-----

Two days later they had another special dance rehearsal with just the two of them. And then again two days after that. 

Mercedes found that she was loving the tango. Or, at least, she was loving the tango with Sam. It was hard, definitely, but there was something about the feel of the music, and the way she could feel his heartbeat pounding where it was pressed against her own. They were obligated to work in intimate space in a way she had never done as a performer before, and when she thought about it she felt like it should be uncomfortable; but it wasn’t. 

Sam’s sweat mixed with hers between their bodies as they reached the end of the dance for the sixth time in a row. He spun her so tightly between his arms that her breasts brushed across his chest in the moment before he squeezed her back against him and hooked his chin over her shoulder for a brief moment before the grand finale.

“Ready?” he whispered, and Mercedes nodded. She rotated slightly to the right as his arm snaked around her back and his body leaned into hers, tipping her off balance. She felt the muscles shifting in his arm as he dipped her over, his face inches from her own. His blue eyes were intense and focused, and she could feel his breath on her neck as she flung her arm out for the flair before he pulled her back up.

Mercedes wasn’t sure how many more of these rehearsals she was going to survive.

She also wasn’t sure how she was going to survive without them.

\-----

At the end of the fifth special rehearsal Simon declared that they were “fantabulous!” and that they would be fine with just the regular show rehearsals from here on in.

“That was a lot of extra rehearsals for a two-and-a-half minute scene,” Sam noted as they gulped from their water bottles and gathered up their bags.

“Some scenes are more technical than others,” Mercedes shrugged as she pulled her bag across her shoulder. She had both loved and hated these rehearsals: hated because they were hard, and loved because...well…

But Sam had always been completely professional. He was friendly and sweet, but had never hinted that he might have an interest in her beyond working together. So she wasn’t about to push it. They had six months of performances ahead of them, and the last thing she needed was awkwardness with a co-worker.

“So, we won’t have a dance rehearsal on Thursday morning,” Sam said softly, breaking into her train of thought.

“No…” Mercedes stopped with her hand still on the bag strap and looked at him.

Sam froze and looked adorably nervous. “Can I take you to breakfast then?”

Mercedes grinned, equal parts relief and excitement flooding through her. “I’d like that.”


End file.
